Mischa’s 3D horror movie Apartment 1303 3D had its world premiere in Russia last week and actually seems to have done pretty well at the box office.

The movie opened in 9th position which would seem pretty low, but it was shown on fewer screens than many other releases. Its total of $685,189 was for the weekend of December 6th-9th inclusive showing on 402 screens with a per screen average of $1,704. Beauty & the Beast 3D opened just above Apartment 1303 3D with $698,984 but that was shown on 502 screens bringing its per screen average down to $1,344. I guess it’s a bit unusual to compare a live action movie to an animated re-release, so let’s move up the list to #6 where Lawless (starring Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy and Jessica Chastain) opened to $791,898 on 650 screens making its average $1,218. Among other English-language releases, Here Comes the Boom (starring Kevin James and Salma Hayek) opened in fifth with a total of $1,198,034 across 460 screens ($2,604 average per screen) and Playing for Keeps opened in 2nd with $2,022,740 across 554 screens ($3,651 per screen). Although, Here Comes the Boom and Playing for Keeps opened much higher, these titles are backed by large studios and have had international press consisting of premieres and worldwide publicity. Considering Apartment 1303 3D is more or less an indie, I think we can call this opening a success thanks to a respectable per screen average – especially when you consider that it quite comfortably out-paced Lawless per screen.

Making Apartment 1303 3D’s opening even better is if we go back to February 2011 when You and I also opened in Russia. That movie came in 7th but had a weekend total of $411,263 or just $827 per screen. You and I had the added benefit of being filmed in Russia, featuring a Russian band and was backed by a promotional visit including press and a premiere just before it was released. Apartment 1303 3D achieved over double the per screen average with just a trailer and TV spots as the main source (possibly only source?) of promotion.

Here is the first trailer for Mischa’s upcoming horror film (and her first 3D venture) titled Apartment 1303 3D. Oddly, Mischa isn’t featured a whole lot in the trailer despite receiving top billing. I don’t know the details of her character but this makes it seem like she’s in more of a supporting role.

On the plus side, the trailer effectively shows off the horror aspects of the film. It features intense scarce tactics unlike some of Mischa’s other works in this genre which have more of a thriller feel. I’m sure the 3D will look very cool on the big screen, *fingers crossed* it makes it to large theatrical distribution.

Apartment 1303 3D Currently Shooting In Montreal
Specialized 3D Crew Brought In From Hong Kong
Image Works Entertainment headed by President David Shoshan in association with Monte Cristo International has acquired worldwide rights to the Japanese remake Apartment 1303 3D. The film, which is currently in production in Canada, stars Mischa Barton, Rebecca De Mornay, and Julianne Michelle. Helmed by Swedish director Daniel Fridell, Apartment 1303 3D is based on the hit Japanese horror film of the same name. This modern day ghost story turns a love-hate relationship between mother and daughter into a tale of horror. Remakes of Asian horror films such as The Grudge and The Ring have collectively grossed over $230 million dollars worldwide. Taking advantage of the current trend and the appetite for 3D films from the public, Shosan said, “A specialized 3D film crew is being brought in from Hong Kong. The fact that we are shooting in 3D, audiences across the world will have a real total experience of the senses when it comes to this film.”

Announcement. Delays. More delays. That’s unfortunately been the gist since we heard that Mischa was attached to star in Apartment 1303 3D. If you’re following this website on Twitter, then you’ll already know that the new production start date is set for November. I thought I’d make a post about it here with some more official time frames as shared by ACTRA Montreal.

The above dates support the information that was posted by the storyboard artist via his blog. So now we just have to keep our fingers crossed that the November date actually happens.

I also stumbled upon an interview with Kasimir Lehto, who appears to be involved with the 3D elements of the movie. As this will be Mischa’s first 3D project, I’m thrilled to see this kind of talk regarding the potential of the technical aspects of the movie.

And how about your plans, what new projects are you working on and what do you hope to do next?
I am hoping to work more and more as a cinematographer on 3D films, as well as being responsible for the stereoscopic aspects of productions. The next big film I’m attached to is called Apartment 1303 – it’s an innovative, independent horror film and will hopefully start shooting in Canada in a month’s time. I am very excited about the project, we have a great vibe with the producer and director of the project and I feel it will be a great opportunity to push the boundaries of 3D creatively and technically. In general, I think it’s the independent, smaller scale projects that will push the language of 3D forward – the bigger studio pictures are quite conservative in their use of 3D and it is unlikely that innovation will come from that direction.
Source: Stereoscape

In some great movie news, Fangoria has announced that Apartment 1303 3D is a go!

MonteCristo Intl. Entertainment has just announced that principal photography has begun on APARTMENT 1303, a supernatural thriller starring Mischa Barton and Rebecca De Mornay.

APARTMENT 1303 is shooting in 3D, and production will start on September 12. The film is a modern ghost story in which a mother and daughter move into a new rental apartment and whose love/hate relationship then turns into a tale of horror.

We have recently finished casting the film “Offline”, and what a cast it is! Starring Mischa Barton, Ron Lea, Dan Levy, Marco Grazzini, Nathalie Brown, it is to begin shooting this month.

This seems to be a Canadian production and although I don’t have specific details, I don’t get the impression this is intended for theatrical release. But we’ll wait and see.

Additionally, I’m about to post a news article claiming that Mischa will be attending the Shanghai Film Festival around the same time that Offline is rumoured to be shooting. So I’m unsure of how the scheduling will work for both commitments.

—

I also wanted to quickly give an update on Apartment 1303 3D. As we know, the film was supposed to be shot in April but the production date has since been moved to early-fall to accommodate cast availability. Work on special effects has already begun with a new start date to be announced, hopefully, within a few weeks. Big thanks to the MCI company for the info!

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